The Lawyer Who Reads Tomorrow - Chapter 83

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 83

“…I was too sorry to contact you right away….”

Kim Su-yeon whispered, trying not to cry.

When Noh Hae-min, who was peeling apples, paused at those words, Manager Yoon Ha-young immediately walked over and offered Kim Su-yeon a handkerchief.

It was one of those handkerchiefs we had bought by the box.

“Ah… thank you.”

Kim Su-yeon spoke with a choked voice.

A completely crumpled and tattered complaint lay on the table.

I alternately looked at that piece of paper and Kim Su-yeon for a moment.

Since Sung Tae-hyun said it was a new case, this must be different from the previous incident.

“…!”

Fifty million won?

That was quite hefty for a civil case involving an individual.

What kind of trouble had she gotten into while I wasn’t around?

I first examined the plaintiff’s name written at the top of the complaint.

Choi Ji-young. A name I’d never seen before.

And the moment I saw the first sentence of the cause of action, an absurd laugh escaped me without realizing it.

“It’s Bae In-jun again.”

Of course it was. I was wondering why that persistent man was staying quiet.

Turns out he had employed yet another tactic.

[The plaintiff has been in a common-law marriage relationship with Bae In-jun, CEO of the unlisted IT company ‘Vailonics Corporation,’ since around 20XX.]

[The plaintiff and Bae In-jun have continued dating and cohabiting with marriage as the premise, have notified family and acquaintances of their marriage, and have attended various social events together as a married couple.]

“Is it true that Bae In-jun has a woman in a common-law marriage relationship?”

Kim Su-yeon sighed and opened her mouth.

A suppressed voice flowed out, as if she felt utterly wronged.

Kim Su-yeon’s voice was already hoarse from how much she had cried.

“No… I didn’t know. I really can’t understand why he obsessed over me like that when he already had a woman….”

“I see.”

Of course, Kim Su-yeon’s testimony also needed to be verified.

The cause of action that followed was truly a typical adultery lawsuit.

[While working at the same company as the aforementioned Bae In-jun, the defendant continued an inappropriate relationship with Bae In-jun from the second half of 20XX, and thereafter maintained continuous contact and private meetings with Bae In-jun, thereby violating the common-law marriage relationship.]

So, the plaintiff of this lawsuit, Choi Ji-young, was claiming that Kim Su-yeon, who was currently being digitally stalked by Bae In-jun with even her mobile phone hacked, was actually the protagonist of an adultery scandal.

[As a result, the plaintiff has suffered serious mental anguish and defamation damage, is facing a crisis of common-law marriage breakdown, and the plaintiff’s social and domestic peace has been greatly violated.]

“Common-law marriage breakdown….”

[Therefore, we claim payment of 50,000,000 won in gold as consolation money for mental damages suffered due to the defendant’s illegal acts.]

Claiming fifty million won in consolation money from an adultery partner was quite rare.

Usually it ends at around twenty or thirty million.

Of course, it’s not unheard of to demand fifty million won.

But it was an amount that clearly showed how much the other party was grinding their teeth over Kim Su-yeon.

‘What was bound to explode has exploded.’

I didn’t think Bae In-jun would stay quiet.

But a sudden adultery lawsuit.

And a common-law marriage at that.

I looked pitifully at Kim Su-yeon, who was trembling while holding her tea cup.

At this level, she really got caught up in something terrible.

“Kim Su-yeon.”

“…Yes.”

Feeling sorry was one thing, but work had to be done.

I put down the complaint and questioned Kim Su-yeon.

The complaint I put down passed through Noh Hae-min’s hands to Ho-shin Senior.

“From now on, you must speak honestly to me.”

“…Yes.”

Kim Su-yeon gulped.

Thinking of the woman who had difficulty even coming out of her room, just coming here must have been painful. That’s exactly why I had to work even harder.

Moreover, it seemed like my actions to eliminate variables had further provoked Bae In-jun.

In short, he was like a leech.

“Did you really not know that Bae In-jun had a common-law spouse?”

Kim Su-yeon bit her lips.

Suddenly, anger flashed in her eyes.

It was a look I’d never seen before.

Until now, Kim Su-yeon had been constantly withdrawn,

and even when she got angry about Bae In-jun, she only showed a lack of confidence again.

“I didn’t know. I really didn’t know. And honestly, I wasn’t even interested.”

“I see.”

“This kind of… this kind of affair, ha, it’s really ridiculous… that I’m now being sued for having that kind of relationship with Bae In-jun is so absurd and…”

Kim Su-yeon was so angry that she even started stuttering.

Her usually pale face was flushed red with anger.

“Even when I worked at the company, Bae In-jun acted like a dictator just because he was the representative. I really loved the Cineser that the company made. Oh, Cineser is an AI Speaker. It’s not important right now, but I worked at that company because I wanted to see Cineser develop…”

“…”

“But Bae In-jun? That crazy bastard had no interest in how the actual work was done, but only gave ridiculous orders? I would have rather reported him to a psychiatric hospital if he had asked me to get dragon scales!”

“…”

“Dating that guy? Love? An affair? I’d rather die! How could I date trash who bullies people at work just because I didn’t accept his confession?!”

Kim Su-yeon couldn’t contain her anger and raised her voice.

Noh Hae-min’s eyes widened.

Yeah, that’s right. I was surprised too.

I thought she was a herbivore like Noh Hae-min, but she was actually a crouched feline.

Noh Hae-min carefully pushed a plate of rabbit-shaped apples he had finished peeling in front of her.

“Um… please calm down.”

Kim Su-yeon, who had been panting with anger, looked down at the rabbit-shaped apples and slowly exhaled.

She still seemed unable to calm her anger.

“An affair with Bae In-jun? I’d communicate better with a random dog on the street!”

It was a more intense reaction than I expected.

“Now I really can’t stand it anymore. I’ve endured as much as I could.”

“Ms. Kim Su-yeon, please calm down. I don’t think you had an affair with Mr. Bae In-jun either.”

I first calmed down the client.

Trust between client and lawyer is important.

Only then could I know the ‘real’ point as Sung Tae-hyun had warned in advance through his diary.

Kim Su-yeon, who had been trembling with anger for a while, slowly regulated her breathing following Noh Hae-min.

“And fifty million won? Ha… What’s really absurd to me is that even if there was someone who had an affair with Bae In-jun, fifty million won is ridiculous! Rather, the person who had an affair with Bae In-jun should receive money! Dating that annoying human being.”

I don’t find Kim Su-yeon’s reaction incomprehensible.

If it’s true that she didn’t commit adultery.

How could she like someone who drove her out of the company through workplace bullying and even committed digital stalking?

“Lawyer, just a moment.”

Manager Yoon Ha-young, having heard our conversation, quickly presented search results first.

Although she hadn’t worked in this office for very long, when it came to work, no one could match Manager Yoon Ha-young.

If you’re Korean, this speed is normal. Quickly, quickly.

“Currently, no one is found when searching for Representative Bae In-jun’s spouse.”

“So it seems they’re claiming it’s a common-law marriage where they just haven’t registered the marriage yet.”

“Yes. However… I found these photos.”

Manager Yoon Ha-young held out her mobile phone.

There were several photos posted on Bae In-jun’s SNS.

“Hmm…”

Ambiguous.

#love #success #self-made #whiskey #dreamlike_night

“…It’s hard to look at with open eyes.”

Manager Yoon Ha-young responded to my words with a cold voice.

“I agree.”

In the photos she found, Bae In-jun and an unknown woman were embracing and smiling.

Looking at the expensive-looking whiskey bottles filling the table, they seemed quite drunk.

Ignoring the tags I didn’t want to read and looking through several pages of Bae In-jun’s SNS, photos with the same woman kept appearing.

They mostly seemed to be photos taken at bars.

“Is this woman Choi Ji-young?”

“It seems likely.”

I showed it to Kim Su-yeon as well, but she shook her head.

“I don’t know anything about someone named Choi Ji-young…”

“I understand for now.”

Choi Ji-young had sent a complaint, but there was still time until the response brief submission deadline.

“For now, if you have any evidence that can prove you didn’t have an affair with Bae In-jun, no matter how small, please send it to me.”

“Yes…”

“Oh, and.”

I asked the woman who now seemed completely calm as her anger had subsided.

“…Have there been no approaches from Bae In-jun like before recently?”

“Ah.”

Kim Su-yeon slowly nodded her head.

That’s fortunate at least, it seems that threat from back then worked.

Though it did lead to a slightly different situation.

“Things like hacking my mobile phone to send messages have really decreased a lot. There wasn’t a single one today. That’s why I could muster the courage to come here….”

“That’s fortunate.”

“Yes….”

“Still, until the matter with Bae In-jun is completely resolved, I recommend staying with family, friends, or acquaintances as much as possible.”

Kim Su-yeon, who hadn’t forgotten the incident with Bae In-jun from last time, answered immediately.

“Yes. I’ll do that.”

“Good. Oh, and next time, Lawyer Noh Hae-min and I would like to visit your house once more.”

“Yes? Ah… but why….”

Because of that damn hub.

The SIN Hub that would remain at Kim Su-yeon’s house.

“There’s something we need to find related to the hacking. If necessary, I’ll send you a text with details.”

“…Ah… yes, I understand. If you let me know in advance, I’ll prepare and wait.”

“And absolutely do not let Bae In-jun or anyone from his side into your house. They could damage the evidence.”

Kim Su-yeon obediently nodded her head.

“Until everything is completely resolved, please preserve the scene as much as possible.”

Kim Su-yeon left looking the same as when she arrived.

Next, it was time to collect evidence.

* * *

“Ho-shin Senior.”

As soon as Kim Su-yeon left, Ho-shin Senior was packing up his few belongings.

He always tries to leave work on time like this.

In a typical company, it might be a virtue for the representative to arrive late and leave early.

But our office wasn’t particularly like that.

“Oh, our Lawyer Sung. What is it?”

Perhaps his heart had grown generous at the thought of leaving work soon, Ho-shin Senior was beaming with smiles.

This won’t do. Actually, there was a person who came to mind while looking at the complaint Choi Ji-young sent earlier.

Since it was someone I, Kim Wook-han, knew, only Ho-shin Senior and I in this office knew of his existence.

“By any chance….”

“Yeah. What’s got you hesitating so much?”

…I am hesitating.

If there had been another route, I wouldn’t have considered this option.

But the name had already slipped out of my mouth.

“…Lee Pil-bong Senior. I was wondering if you might know him.”

Of course Ho-shin Senior would know that name.

Lee Pil-bong was a much younger junior compared to Ho-shin Senior and me.

Though he was from law school, he never missed any gatherings, so even I knew his name.

The last time I heard news of him, I’d heard rumors that he was running a detective agency.

It really was a job that suited him.

“Lee Pil-bong…? Ah, ah! Pil-bong!”

A pleased light appeared in Ho-shin Senior’s eyes.

As expected, he remembers.

He’s someone you could never forget once you’ve seen him even once.

He really was talent suited for running a detective agency.

Even his admission to Korea University Law School wasn’t out of some grand passion to fulfill his dreams as a legal professional.

Lee Pil-bong was an eccentric who entered law school with the sole intention of learning law in advance for the he would someday open.

“That guy! That bastard, right. I’ve been hearing news about him. But why?”

“I think I heard rumors before that he was running a detective agency.”

“Aha! That’s right!”

“…Wook-han Senior told me about it.”

Even at my hastily added words, Ho-shin Senior burst into hearty laughter.

“I heard too. He’s apparently doing well running his detective agency…? What do you call it, that, detective office.”

And.

“I heard he even changed his name! That guy was a huge fan of that novel… ah, that’s right. Sherlock Holmes! He was a fanatic about that.”

…No way.

“He changed his name to Lee Seol-rok and opened his practice near Goshi Village, but wait, why do you ask about that guy?”

I shouldn’t have asked.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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